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Nine individuals involved in a drug and gun trafficking network in Dutchess County have been sentenced following an 18-month investigation. Muayad Qader, a 35-year-old from Poughkeepsie, received a 14-year prison sentence after pleading guilty to multiple felonies related to the operation. He admitted to selling fentanyl and illegal firearms throughout the area.
The network's main supplier, Jason Knapp, was sentenced to 40 years in prison. Knapp, who resided in Dutchess County, manufactured untraceable AR-style ghost guns in his home and sold them to Qader. The two often met at a Valero gas station or Qader’s residence for these transactions.
New York Attorney General Letitia James announced the sentences on Wednesday (January 29), emphasizing the impact of these convictions on community safety. "These dangerous criminals flooded New York communities with untraceable ghost guns and counterfeit opioids containing deadly amounts of fentanyl," James stated.
The investigation led to the recovery of 31 firearms and a 63-count indictment charging seven defendants with selling fentanyl-laced pills in Dutchess County. The arrests and convictions were part of a collaborative effort involving the Attorney General’s Organized Crime Task Force, the New York State Police Special Investigations Unit – Hudson Valley, the Dutchess County District Attorney’s Office, the Dutchess County Sheriff’s Office, and the City of Poughkeepsie Police Department.